The First Step
by Dragon Pearl1
Summary: First step to friendship, first step to madness, and first step on to the winding road. Dumbledore and Grindelwald's first meeting, slight DH spoilers


A/N: I cannot be the only one who wanted more of Dumbledore and Grindelwald. Seriously, I can just see the two going at it with their brilliant knowledge and whatnot and _omigod_ so sad, but I am actually completely into the _Dumbledore_ backstory. And, you know, generally fangirling the man in white.

Reviews are always filled with awesome, and if you spot any errors, please let me know!

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The First Step

"Say, is there a library near here?"

Albus looked up slowly from a dandelion plant he was turning purple with spots with his wand and stared at the new comer. The teen seemed to be around his age with curly blonde hair and a handsome face, giving off an aura of superiority. "Yes," he said simply, and went back to altering the colour of the flower.

It was in the summer and Albus, tired of being cooped up in his house the entire time watching his sister while his brother was off finishing an education he didn't want, decided to bask in the sunlight a bit in his yard. If his sister really did become upset, he still would be plenty close enough to the house to hear the racket she would have made.

"Well can you tell me where?" The tone of voice was still mellow and cheerful, but there was a slight edge of irritation in it.

He gave a lazy wave of his wand in a vague direction to his left, and the dandelion became a spotted lizard which scrambled away from the two. "Over there somewhere. Why?"

"_Obviously_," the stranger said, crouching down so he was eye level with Albus, "I want to read a book."

"Oh." Albus adjusted his spectacles. "What book?"

The stranger gave him a bemused look as if he didn't know or not if Albus was purposely being smart with him to tick him off or if he really was that dim. "I don't think you'll know it. _Ancient History of Ireland and Their Folklore_ by Crimmy Wamish. I started reading it at school and I never got a chance to finish it."

"You should," Albus said mildly, absentmindedly brushing bits of grass and dirt off the front of his mauve robes. "It's a good book. There are a few crucial stories missing, like _The Fountain of Fair Fortune _and _The Other Dragon's Egg_."

The teen's eyes widened. "You've read it? Hardly anyone I've known has read it before! What about _Thirty-five Cureless_ –"

"– _Curses for the Curious_?" Albus finished, a slight smile forming on his face. "While I think that the book is a little out of date, considering I've proven that with a few simple drops of mimblandor essence –"

"– the Cancreus Curse is easily undone!" the person finished, positively beaming at Albus. "I thought I was the only to have tried that on someone."

"Well actually," Albus said cautious, his faint smile disappearing. "I've really only tried it on some of my brother's pet goats before. Don't tell him though, because he's not very trusting of me to begin with." His brother nearly killed him when he found one of his beloved goats bleeding to death from large circular holes drilled into it.

The stranger's face seemed to fall. "Oh. I thought you tried the curse and the cure on a student like I did. Either way, my name's Grindelwald. Gellert Grindelwald. I'm a nephew of my Aunt Bathilda." He stuck his hand out.

"Dumbledore. Albus Dumbledore. I live here." He shook.

Gellert stood up with a whoop, eyes shining mischievously as he looked over Albus with a lot more interest than before. "Dumbledore? _The_ Dumbledore? Is it true that your father attacked three muggles?"

Staring up at him with a face that clearly showed no interest in this particular subjected, he nodded unhurriedly. "Yes."

"That's brilliant!" Gellert exclaimed and sat down on a patch of grass beside him. He started talking with a lot more enthusiasm than before. "I wish my father could have done something as wicked as that! You should have seen the trouble I got in when I played a joke on a muggle that strayed too far to my school."

"They imprisoned him for it, you know," Albus commented in what seemed to be a forced casual tone. The grip on his wand tightened. "For giving them what they deserved."

"For being muggles?"

"What?" Albus turned at gave Gellert a strange look. "No, for –" Then he cut himself off as if realizing he said something more than he should have. "Anyways, didn't you say you wished to visit the library?"

"Right!" Gellert was slightly red and had a sheepish look on his face. "Could you show me where it is? I'm not particularly good at following directions."

Half of him did want to go, to go with this stranger who shined with so much life and energy. But then he remember what he promised his brother and that he _had_ to show he was worthy of trust too, even if Aberforth didn't think so. But it was _only_ his sister. He hadn't had anyone his age to talk to since Elphias left on his trip and Elphias hadn't been quite as intelligent as Gellert seemed.

Gellert had stood up and was pulling Albus urgently by his hand. "Come on," he commanded, an air of impatience around him. "Show me where the library is."

Albus stood up gradually, stuck his wand behind his ear, and patted the remainder of the grass and muck off his robes. "I can't."

In a flash, Gellert's mood seemed to have changed. "Why not?" he demanded, narrowing his eyes. The grip on his hand started to hurt. "You're not doing anything important. I saw you; you were just doing basic transfiguration on a flower. How can you have time to talk to me, but not show me where the library is?"

"I have to watch the house," Albus said lamely and sighed. Elphias never had to deal with a family like his. "I have to watch my sister. She's… frail and she might hurt herself if I'm not there."

"You're not in the house now!" Gellert removed his hand from Albus' hand and waved it around him agitatedly. "I suppose you're doing a bang up job of watching over her when you're not there!"

Well no, Albus thought, somewhat aggravated himself. He's not, but with the noise that his sister _does _make when she's in a state, he might as well have been. How does he tell someone he can't leave the house for long because his sister's nutters anyways?

Seeming to take his silence as consent, Gellert started to pull Albus along down the sidewalk, walking in the general direction where Albus had pointed before.

"I can't," Albus repeated, trying to jerk his hand out of the other teen's. Gellert's grasp only tightened. "I can't let anything happen to my sister."

"Fine," Gellert hissed, releasing him and walking away. He called over his shoulder, "I thought maybe we could've been friends. I thought maybe we could've actually talked with someone who understood each other."

Tucking a stray lock of auburn hair behind the ear that didn't have his wand, Albus bit his lips and looked at his house – a bit dreary, he's going to have to _Scourgify_ the walls sometime soon – to the curly haired youth who was walking away and back at the house.

What would his mum have wanted him to do?

"Wait!" Albus called and ran after him, his sandals slapping against the dirt path. "Wait! I'll show you! But it has to be quick, agreed?"

Gellert's former sullen expression disappeared and it seemed like his entire face lit up. "Definitely!"

Walking down the road to the town library with a new friend in toil, Albus gave one last lingering look at his house and the sister that was trapped in it. Nothing bad should happen. It was only going to be a _little_ while…


End file.
